Turkey fires over 1,700 military officers, shuts media groups

Ankara, (IANS) Turkey has formally discharged over 1,700 officers from the military and dozens of media organisations were shut down following the recent failed attempted coup.

Those discharged on Wednesday were 87 land army generals, 30 air force generals, 32 admirals, 726 commissioned officers, 256 sergeants from Land Forces Command, 59 commissioned officers, 63 sergeants from Navy Force Command; 30 generals, 314 commissioned officers and 117 sergeants from Air Force Command have also been dismissed over their alleged links to the attempted coup on July 15 to 16, state-run Anadolu News Agency reported.

The move is part of new regulations, published in a statement on Wednesday in Turkey’s Official Gazette, and come as part of the country’s three-month state of emergency.

The Turkish Coast Guard and Gendarmerie General Command have also been brought under the Interior Ministry’s control, the agency said.

The discharge of generals, many of whom are under arrest, comes ahead of a meeting of Turkey’s Supreme Military Council, which is expected to agree to drastic changes in the country’s armed forces.

Meanwhile, 45 newspapers, 16 television stations, 23 radio stations, three news agencies and 15 magazines have been ordered to close by the Turkish government, the agency reported citing the statement as saying.

However, the media outlets to be shutdown were not named.

Authorities have sacked, suspended or detained some 60,000 people, mainly public-sector employees, after a small faction of the military tried to overthrow the country’s democratically elected government.

They are accused of sympathising or belonging to a religious group led by Fetullah Gulen, an Islamic preacher in self-imposed exile in the US.